Magical sleep powers

Does this happen to anyone else? I won’t be able to solve a problem or find the answer to something, I’ll go to sleep and bam – I’ll have a dream about it or wake up with the knowing answer.

This happened to me just recently over a weekend when I had to go in to the office to do some work. I was reconciling a credit card statement and didn’t have a receipt for one of the transactions. I couldn’t for the life of me figure out what on earth it was and why I hadn’t saved the receipt or note of it along with everything else. I ravaged my emails and nary a note was to be found regarding this one receipt. My shoulders hunched in failure and I was dreading having to tell someone that I couldn’t explain the charge (though it seemed familiar and was bugging the hell out of me).

I finished up my work and went home, trying not to think about it. That night, I dreamt about the situation and the answer came to me while I slept: the same person to whom I owed an explanation about the charge had told me verbally a few weeks before that she was putting something on the card and there was no receipt for it. The reason I didn’t remember was because I had never done it in the first place! The relief that flooded through me was immense.

And then I was like, what the hell, brain, how come you couldn’t have figured that out twelve hours ago?

I find the power of the subconscious incredible. When it’s completely relaxed without the stressors of daily life, it becomes my own personal superhero.

I can’t tell you how often this happens to me, though. It could be that I misplace something valuable, that I’m anxiously waiting for something to happen (like a check clearing), and then for whatever reason, I will dream how I want it to get resolved and usually it comes to fruition. Am I psychic? I’m not a god and I didn’t even need twelve years of Catholic school to know that. (Please tell me a few of you get that reference.)

I will say that I only use my powers for good and that for whatever reason that this does happen to me, I like it a lot. It’s not as cool as an invisibility cape, but it’ll do.

Lastly, for your entertainment, I am linking to a particular scene in one of my all-time favorite films. Because you can never have enough Groundhog Day. Amen.

You speak truth, lady. The same thing does happen to me, and has saved my ass more than once. I think we all have so much external stimuli now, that it would be more surprising if MORE things didn’t slip out of our conscious minds. Or, at least, that’s what I tell myself while circling the kitchen because I lost my coffee cup… again.

If I’m writing an article or essay, and have a hard time transitioning between thoughts, I’ll sleep on it–or better, yet, I’ll take a shower (in either case, the answer comes to me, and I’m ready to knock out whatever it I was working on).

The trick is learning to control and recognize it before or as it happens…I get it alot sort of a deja vu that I remember the dream after something happens…very rarely do I recognize the moment of dream and reality mixing before or as it happens…And so far no dreams about lotto numbers….rats!!!

I always figure things out when I’m taking a bath. If I can’t remember something or need an idea, I just take a bath. I do get that deja vu feeling sometimes though, where you must’ve dreamed about that moment or something. It’s really weird when it lasts for a few minutes and you realize you know everything that everyone is going to say. So weird.

I usually have my “ah ha!” moments when my brain is otherwise engaged. That is, when I’m driving or listening to music or even talking to someone. Perhaps it is the act of letting your brain disassociate from the problem that lets it subconsciously work on it in the background. Great post, I love your blog! 🙂